COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Council Tax

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he has any plans to require a council to hold a referendum if it plans to increase the level of council tax.

Brandon Lewis: I refer my hon. Friend to my written statement of 18 December 2013, Official Report, columns 101-4WS.
	We will set our proposals in a report to the House of Commons in due course, for subsequent approval by the House.

Fire Services: Risk Management

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress he has made on developing integrated risk management planning guidance since publication of the Fire and Rescue National Framework for England in July 2012; when the Integrated Risk Management Plan Steering Group has met since May 2010; and what plans he has to deliver the Fire and Rescue National Framework for England and associated risk management planning.

Brandon Lewis: The Fire and Rescue National Framework for England, published in July 2012, made clear that Government did not intend to issue any additional guidance in relation to integrated risk management planning in the light of the sector-owned Integrated Risk Management Plan Steering Group, which was put in place to take this work forward.
	Since May 2010, this group met twice under the chairmanship of my Department: in November 2010 and in February 2011. In February 2011, the responsibility for the group was transferred to the Chief Fire Officers' Association, and officials from my Department have not been invited to participate in any subsequent meetings.
	The Framework also set out that fire and rescue authorities must publish an annual statement of assurance on financial, governance and operational matters including showing how they have had due regard to the expectations set out in their integrated risk management plan. In May 2013 my Department published light touch guidance on the content of these annual statements:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statements-of-assurance-for-fire-and-rescue-authorities-in-england
	My Department reports on the overall delivery of the Framework to Parliament biennially. The last report was laid in July 2012 and set out that the Secretary of State was satisfied that fire and rescue authorities had been acting in accordance with the Framework, and that he had not taken any formal steps to secure compliance.

Housing: Construction

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2013, Official Report, column 158W, on housing: construction, how many of the 267,500 units with planning permission that had been listed as having started on site have subsequently been put on hold.

Nicholas Boles: holding answer 9 January 2014
	According to Glenigan, between December 2013 and January 2014, one site location (representing 30 units) moved from having started on site to being placed on hold. We do not have more detail on the local circumstances behind this.
	However, as I informed the right hon. Member in my answer to him of 16 January 2014, Official Report, columns 611-12W, the overall number of dwellings classified as 'on hold or shelved' has fallen from 57,100 in December 2013 to 55,800 in January 2014, as part of the wider trend of fewer stalled sites, as I have outlined in previous answers.

Planning

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of local authorities in England have in place a core strategy that complies with the National Planning Policy Framework.

Nicholas Boles: holding answer 20 January 2014
	We have put Local Plans at the centre of the planning system. Local Plans are the key to delivering sustainable development that reflects the vision and aspiration of local communities. We are therefore supporting all local planning authorities in their plan-making work through a programme of support alongside the Planning Inspectorate and Planning Advisory Service.
	Three quarters of local planning authorities have now published a Local Plan and over half have an adopted Local Plan.
	To place this in context, six years after the Labour Government's 2004 Planning Act, by May 2010, only one in six local planning authorities had an adopted Core Strategy. Labour's top-down Regional Strategies were one of the key reasons for this delay: adding complexity to the planning process and discouraging local decision-making.

Planning Obligations

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he intends to publish the Government's response to the consultation on Renegotiation of Section 106 planning obligations.

Nicholas Boles: holding answer 23 January 2014
	The Government's response to the consultation on the Renegotiation of Section 106 planning obligations 2012 was set out in the Explanatory Memorandum that accompanied The Town and Country Planning (Modification and Discharge of Planning Obligations) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2013. This can be found at:
	http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/147/pdfs/uksiem_20130147_en.pdf

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Employee Ownership: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses located in Cumbria have adopted employee shareholder status for some or all of their employees since September 2013.

Jennifer Willott: Those thinking of using the new status may seek advice from a number of different sources such as their legal contacts, or a helpline or business organisation but there is no requirement on any company wishing to offer an employee shareholder contract to notify any Government Department or agency in advance.
	Consequently, details of the number of companies offering employee shareholder status or the number of employee shareholders are not available at the national or Cumbrian level.

Flexible Working

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the number of people working flexibly in each of the last four years.

Jennifer Willott: The latest Work-life Balance Employee Survey shows that in 2011, 60% of employees were working flexibly.
	The percentages working flexibly in the years 2012-14 are likely to be similar to, or slightly higher than, 60%.
	The survey defines working flexibly as any of the following: working part-time, term-time working, job-share, flexi-time, reduced hours for a limited period, working from home, compressed working week, and annualised hours.
	The Fourth Work-life Balance Employee Survey was published by BIS in July 2012 and can be found on GOV.UK.

UK Trade & Investment

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff were (a) seconded, (b) loaned and (c) hired to UK Trade & Investment from private sector organisations in each of the last five years; and if he will take steps to increase the proportion of UK Trade & Investment staff hired directly from the private sector.

Michael Fallon: UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is not an employer in its own right and the majority of its staff are recruited and employed by one or other of its two parent Departments-the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
	(a) Staff seconded into UK Trade & Investment (UK) from private sector organisations in each of the last five years are as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
			 2007-08 5 
			 2008-09 9 
			 2009-10 12 
			 2010-11 15 
			 2012-13 21 
		
	
	(b) No staff are loaned from the private sector, only from other Government Departments (OGDs).
	(c) In 2012-13, 13 staff were recruited externally by BIS for UKTI in the UK. Historical recruitment information for UKTI, and for the 1,100 locally engaged staff overseas, is not held centrally.
	UKTI staff work alongside private-sector delivery partners supporting the delivery of trade and inward investment services. In 2012-13, around 450 people from private sector partners worked with UKTI to support British business. We will continue to use a mix of public and private sector staff and delivery partners in order to deliver our objectives, including hiring civil servants from the private sector where we need to do so.

DEFENCE

Germany

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the amount payable to the German Government on the relinquishment of his Department's estate in Germany.

Andrew Murrison: I refer my right hon. Friend to the answer given by the former Minister of State for the Armed Forces, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan), on 10 September 2013, Official Report, column 670W.

Radar: Hebrides

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  when were plans to upgrade the radar in North Uist were first proposed; and what the anticipated installation date is;
	(2)  what plans he has to upgrade radar equipment in North Uist.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence signed a contract in November 2013 for the upgrade of the air defence radar in North Uist, called Remote Radar Head (RRH) Benbecula. The contract also included the upgrade of RRH Buchan.
	The upgrade of RRH Benbecula to the new TPS radar 77 standard is due to be completed by mid-2015.

EDUCATION

Children in Care

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure parity between the new support being offered to adopted children and their families and those children who return home from care and their families, in order to address the underlying reasons why such children came into care.

Edward Timpson: The improving permanence for looked after children consultation set out a number of proposals that sought to address the issues faced by children returning home to the care of their families.
	Following the consultation, we are reviewing what changes may be needed to the statutory framework to clarify the duties of local authorities with regards to children returning home. In particular, we are committed to working with the sector to explore how we can ensure that the decision to return a child home, regardless of their legal status, is based on an assessment of the child's support needs, the capacity of the family to meet these needs and the on-going support required to ensure the return home is a success.

Children: Internet

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps she is taking to prevent young people from being bullied or having upsetting experiences when they are online.

Edward Timpson: The Government believe that internet providers, schools and parents all have a role to play in keeping children and young people safe online.
	All schools must have a behaviour policy which includes measures to prevent all forms of bullying, including cyberbullying. Schools have the flexibility to develop their own measures to prevent and tackle bullying, but are held to account by Ofsted.
	The Government recognise that educating young people about online safety is key to tackling cyberbullying. As part of changes to the new computing programmes of study which will be taught from September 2014, e-safety will be taught at all four key stages. This will empower young people to tackle cyberbullying through responsible, respectful and secure use of technology, as well as ensuring that pupils understand age-appropriate ways of reporting any concerns they may have about what they see or encounter online.
	The new curriculum also offers opportunities to tackle the underlying causes of bullying; for example the new citizenship programme of study sets out a requirement for pupils to be taught about the diverse national, regional, religious and ethnic identities in the United Kingdom and the need for mutual respect and understanding.
	The Department is providing £4 million of funding over two years from 2013 to four anti-bullying organisations: Beatbullying, the Diana Award, Kidscape and the National Children's Bureau consortium. While this funding has been awarded to specific projects to reduce bullying in general this can, and does, include work to tackle cyberbullying.
	Government Ministers have regular meetings with internet providers, social media platforms and search engines on matters related to internet safety, including cyber-bullying. Ministers from the Department for Education, Home Office and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport also co-chair the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) which brings together a range of experts across Government, law enforcement, industry, academia and charities to consider the best ways to minimise the risk of harm to children when online.
	In July 2013 the Prime Minister announced measures to support parents to install free and easy to use internet filters which can block access to harmful websites. The internet service providers (ISPs) have now rolled out easy to use filtering to all new customers and will confirm that, by the end of 2014, 95% of all homes with an existing internet connection will be required to choose whether to switch on a whole home family friendly internet filter. The filters are constantly being refined and updated by the ISPs to keep families as safe as possible in the fast changing digital world. The ISPs have also announced a new internet safety campaign over 3 years that will reach out to millions of parents on how best to protect their children and make good use of filters.
	They have committed £25 million to the first year of the campaign.

Families: Disadvantaged

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2013, Official Report, column 650W, on disadvantaged families, if he will supply further detailed information about the practical support offered by his Department to the Department for Communities and Local Government in relation to the Troubled Families programme.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education (DFE) officials are currently working with DCLG on protocols allowing for the linking of national administrative databases to ensure that there is an effective evaluation of the Troubled Families programme.
	The Department for Education agreed to support the programme financially by transferring funding to the value of £105 million over three years.
	Officials from DFE meet regularly with officials from the Department for Communities, and Local Government (DCLG) to discuss progress and development of the Troubled Families programme. A key aim is to ensure that DFE's policies and programmes help to deliver the principle goals and objectives of the Troubled Families programme. This includes DFE programmes on improving attendance and behaviour at schools and those on improving local authorities' children's services.

Young People: Unemployment

Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many young people from the September 2013 intake required to stay in education, training or apprenticeships under Raising the Participation Age have been unable to find places in (a) education, (b) training and (c) apprenticeships to date.

David Laws: Local authorities are required to inform the Department by the end of October how many young people had not received an offer by the end of September. The Department plans to make information on the proportion of young people who did not receive an offer available on its website in due course once it has completed quality assurance checks on the data.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Electricity Generation

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what comparative assessment he has made of the difference in cost and payments of the National Grid company offer payment prize schedule for electricity generation for standardised times and days and to those of the previous merit order schedule; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to prevent gaming of the payment prize schedule by power station operators; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: In its role as System Operator, National Grid is responsible for balancing the country's supply and demand of electricity second by second and managing any localised constraints on the transmission network. One of the tools National Grid uses to do this is the Balancing Mechanism, which operates through generators submitting monetary 'offers' to increase or 'bids' to decrease the amount of electricity they produce from a particular plant. Ofgem places commercial incentives on National Grid to ensure it balances the system efficiently and provides value for consumers.
	Ofgem monitors the operation of the wholesale market and the behaviour of its participants, including prices paid through the Balancing Mechanism. In October 2012, the Department implemented the Transmission Constraint Licence Condition (TCLC) in response to Ofgem concerns about the potential for generators to charge unduly high prices to National Grid during periods of transmission constraint. This placed a condition into generators' licences preventing them obtaining an excessive benefit at the expense of consumers during such periods, for example by making dispatch decisions that create or exacerbate constraints, or obtaining an excessive benefit from bids they make to reduce their output. Prior to its implementation, the Department published an Impact Assessment of the TCLC, which is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/modifying-the-conditions-of-electricity-generation-licences
	Ofgem is responsible for monitoring generators' compliance with the TCLC, and has reported a positive impact in its first year.

Green Deal Scheme

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether buildings owned by central or local government are eligible for finance under the Green Deal.

Gregory Barker: The Green Deal legislative framework imposes no restriction in relation to ownership of property by central or local government, although there may be other factors which affect a particular public authority's ability to obtain Green Deal finance, such as rules restricting borrowing by public authorities.

Training

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which Ministers in his Department have undertaken training courses; and in the case of each such course what the (a) name of the course provider, (b) purpose of the course and (c) cost of each session in the course was.

Gregory Barker: We can confirm that the following media training for Ministers, which the Department's Press Office arranged, has taken place at an overall cost of £3,960:
	The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Mr Davey)—July 2012 by Electric Airwaves
	Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, my noble Friend Baroness Verma—June 2013 by Burson-Marstella Ltd
	These training sessions covered television, radio and journalist interviews.
	No other current DECC Ministers or former Ministers have received media training arranged by the Department in this Government.

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure that people with low household incomes are able to access help with their energy bills when the Warm Home Discount Scheme ends; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: While the current Warm Home Discount Regulations expire in 2015, the Government have committed to extending the scheme to 2015-16 with an increased spend of £320 million. We plan to consult on the future design of the scheme in spring this year.
	The Warm Home Discount is only one element of the Government's approach to supporting low income households with their energy bills. Other relevant policies include the Energy Company Obligation—which leads to lower bills through improving energy efficiency—cold weather payments and, for all pensioners, winter fuel payments.
	As well as consulting on the future of the Warm Home Discount we will also consult later this year on the future of ECO and on a new fuel poverty strategy. This strategy will set out our long-term proposals for helping people on low incomes with high energy costs.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bovine Tuberculosis

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 14 January 2014, Official Report, columns 470-1W, on bovine tuberculosis, how many of the 120 badgers which were subject to post mortem examination were found to have bovine tuberculosis.

George Eustice: The purpose of the structured programme of field observations of controlled shooting and the associated post-mortem examination of carcases was to gather the required evidence to support an assessment of humaneness of controlled shooting, not to test badgers culled for infection with M.bovis. Levels of infection were investigated during the randomised badger culling trial and approximately one third of badgers were found to be infected. It has not been repeated during the pilots.

Environment Agency: West Sussex

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what capital and revenue spend the Environment Agency has made in (a) Crawley and (b) Horsham parliamentary constituencies from May 2010 up to the latest date for which figures are available.

Dan Rogerson: Information on overall spend by the Environment Agency is not held in a way that can be easily extracted to answer this question. It would be of disproportionate cost to provide the information as requested.
	However, Environment Agency spend on flood and coastal risk management in Crawley and Horsham can be extracted and figures since May 2010 are shown in the following tables. The Capital expenditure is actual expenditure while the Revenue spend represents the amount allocated.
	
		
			 Crawley 
			 Project Year of spend Amount (£) 
			 Capital   
			 Upper Mole Flood Alleviation Scheme 2010 to present 11,600,000 
			 Burstow Stream Modelling 2012 45,000 
			 Gatwick Gauging Station Power upgrade 2013 15,000 
			 Gatwick Link Gauge solar panels 2013 2,600 
			    
			 Revenue   
			 Maintenance Crawley 2013 168,400 
			 1 Allocated 
		
	
	
		
			 Horsham 
			 Project Year of spend Amount (£) 
			 Capital   
			 Horsham Modelling 2011 50,000 
			 Warnham Mill 2010 to present 257,000 
			    
			 Revenue   
			 Maintenance Horsham 2010 to present 1374,000 
			 1 Allocated 
		
	
	
		
			 Joint constituencies 
			 Project Year of spend Amount (£) 
			 Capital   
			 Flood Warning telemetry 2010 to present 63,200 
			 River gauging maintenance 2010 to present 1,300 
			    
			 Revenue   
			 Nil — —

Fish: Conservation

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department takes to publicise to consumers the list of fish species whose stocks are considered to be at risk.

George Eustice: The Sea Fish Industry Authority “Seafish” are responsible for promoting responsible sourcing throughout the supply chain. Seafish produces Responsible Sourcing Guides and the associated Buying Seafood Guide. These guides provide consumers and the seafood industry with information on the sustainability of seafood, including species or stocks at risk.

Floods: Insurance

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure the delivery of the Flood Re scheme on time and to plan.

Dan Rogerson: We continue to work closely with the Association of British Insurers (ABI) to ensure Flood Re is delivered as per the Memorandum of Understanding. DEFRA officials have regular meetings with the insurance industry on delivery of Flood Re and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the right hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson), also meets regularly with senior members of the ABI.
	The necessary flood insurance clauses have been successfully added to the Water Bill and are soon to be debated in the House of Lords.

Floods: Insurance

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure the affordability of flood insurance and prevent premiums from rising disproportionately until the Flood Re scheme has come into force.

Dan Rogerson: The proposed approach, known as Flood Re, would effectively limit the amount that most UK households should have to pay for flood insurance to ensure that people can continue to access affordable home insurance. The necessary legislation is in the process of being taken forward through the Water Bill and insurers have agreed to continue to abide by their commitments under the 2008 Statement of Principles until this has passed through Parliament and Flood Re is set up.
	We have published a guide that provides advice on how to obtain affordable cover. We recommend that anyone finding it difficult to obtain insurance should use a broker and shop around to make sure they get the best price for their insurance. There are a range of organisations that can provide help and advice, such as the British Insurance Brokers' Association and the National Flood Forum.

Sky Lanterns

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure people are better aware of the risks of Chinese lanterns.

George Eustice: We are working with retailers and manufacturers to help improve the standards of sky lanterns and to develop a code of practice for their safe use. We will also continue to work with the farming industry to provide clear advice to the public on how to use them responsibly.

Water Charges

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 14 January 2014, Official Report, column 476W, on water charges, if he will take steps to encourage a further reduction in the proportion of households paying for water by rateable value.

Dan Rogerson: Any customer can opt to get a meter fitted free of charge from their company. We want companies to do more to promote metering to those who would benefit, but some struggling customers would see their bills rise. The Government do not take a blanket approach because circumstances are very different in different regions. Instead, particular attention is focused on areas of serious water stress.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Bangladesh

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his colleagues in the international community regarding possible responses by the UK and its allies to recent events in Bangladesh.

Hugh Robertson: We are encouraging Bangladesh's political parties to begin a new political dialogue to find a sustainable system for contesting elections that is acceptable to everyone and does not result in an impasse every five years. The UK is working with international partners including through the European Union to help achieve this.

Bangladesh

Simon Danczuk: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he is participating in talks with all political parties in Bangladesh to seek a peaceful solution to the conflict in that country.

Hugh Robertson: Prior to the 5 January election, the UK urged all sides to resolve their differences through meaningful dialogue and to create the conditions conducive to free, fair and credible elections. Visiting Bangladesh on 12 December, the Senior Minister of State, my noble Friend the right hon. Baroness Warsi, encouraged PM Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Ziato continue the process of dialogue initiated by UN Assistant Secretary General Oscar Fernandez Taranco. We continue to urge the new Government and all parties to work together to strengthen democratic accountability as an urgent priority and to build the willingness and capacity to hold future participatory elections free from intimidation and reprisals.

Burma

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether Kyaw Hla Aung was raised when a Minister in his Department last met the new Burmese ambassador to the UK: and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: I last met the Burmese ambassador to the UK on 20 January 2014. I last raised political prisoners with him, when we met on 12 December, as I did in my meeting with Minister for the President's Office, Tin Naing Thein, on 22 November. In my public statement on 31 December I specifically called for the release of Kyaw Hla Aung, along with Dr Tun Aung and others whose status as a political prisoner is disputed. I intend to raise this issue again during my visit to Burma at the end of this month.

Burma

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy that the UK take steps to ensure the renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Burma; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burma will next be considered in March at the UN Human Rights Council. The Special Rapporteur plays a valuable role providing independent reporting on the human rights situation in Burma. As the current Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojeo Quintana reported to the UN in October, progress has been made in a number of areas but there are still some very serious human rights concerns. Independent reporting on the human rights situation in Burma remains very important as the country continues with its reform process.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have used the transport of the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy since May 2010.

David Lidington: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), has used an aeroplane chartered by the European External Action Service (EEAS) on one occasion since May 2010.
	There have been no other occasions of Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers using transportation provided by the EEAS or the High Representative since May 2010.

Libya

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the budget for the British Council's operations in Tripoli was in each of the last two years; and what the British Council's objectives were over that period.

Hugo Swire: Figures for the grant in aid and turnover of the British Council's operations in Libya for the last two years are given in the following table. The bulk of the British Council's work in Libya is undertaken in Tripoli, but it is also working with partners, to deliver programmes in Zawai, Misrata and Al-Khoms, and is having an impact through countrywide programmes supported by the Libyan authorities.
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Grant in aid Other turnover Total turnover 
			 2011-12 1.44 0.04 1.48 
			 2012-13 1.71 3.43 5.14 
		
	
	The British Council's key objectives for its work in Tripoli over the period have been to support the country's majority youth population to develop skills for employment and gain a voice in shaping the future of their country.

Sugar

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times officials in his Department have met (a) representatives of the World Sugar Research Organisation and (b) Sugar Nutrition UK in each year since 2010.

Hugo Swire: According to our records, Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials have not met representatives of the either the World Sugar Research Organisation or Sugar Nutrition UK since 2010.

USA

Michael Crockart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had on restarting the processing of entry visas at the American Consulate in Edinburgh.

Hugh Robertson: We are not aware of Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers or officials having any discussions on restarting processing of visas at the consulate in Edinburgh.

HEALTH

Accident and Emergency Departments

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of patients were seen in under four hours at (a) type 1 accident and emergency departments and (b) all accident and emergency departments in each week of 2009-10.

Jane Ellison: The proportion of patients who were transferred, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival at type 1 accident and emergency (A&E) departments and all A&E departments in each week of 2009-10 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Proportion of patients who were transferred, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival in type 1 and all A&E departments each week in 2009-10 
			 Week number Week ending Performance standard (percentage) Percentage of patients who were transferred, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival (type 1 A&E departments) Percentage of patients who were transferred, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival (all A&E departments) 
			  2009    
			 1 5 April 98 97.4 98.2 
			 2 12 April 98 97.9 98.5 
			 3 19 April 98 97.7 98.4 
			 4 26 April 98 98.0 98.6 
			 5 3 May 98 98.1 98.6 
			 6 10 May 98 98.1 98.6 
			 7 17 May 98 98.2 98.7 
			 8 24 May 98 98.0 98.6 
			 9 31 May 98 98.1 98.7 
			 10 7 June 98 98.1 98.7 
			 11 14 June 98 98.2 98.7 
			 12 21 June 98 98.3 98.8 
			 13 28 June 98 98.0 98.6 
			 14 5 July 98 97.5 98.2 
			 15 12 July 98 98.1 98.7 
			 16 19 July 98 98.2 98.8 
			 17 26 July 98 98.5 98.9 
			 18 2 August 98 98.5 98.9 
			 19 9 August 98 98.2 98.7 
			 20 16 August 98 98.2 98.8 
			 21 23 August 98 98.5 98.9 
			 22 30 August 98 98.6 99.0 
			 23 6 September 98 98.4 98.9 
			 24 13 September 98 98.0 98.6 
			 25 20 September 98 98.0 98.6 
			 26 27 September 98 97.7 98.4 
		
	
	
		
			 27 4 October 98 97.7 98.4 
			 28 11 October 98 97.3 98.1 
			 29 18 October 98 97.3 98.1 
			 30 25 October 98 96.8 97.7 
			 31 1 November 98 ' 96.7 97.7 
			 32 8 November 98 97.0 97.9 
			 33 15 November 98 97.2 98.0 
			 34 22 November 98 97.1 97.9 
			 35 29 November 98 97.2 98.0 
			 36 6 December 98 96.5 97.6 
			 37 13 December 98 96.5 97.5 
			 38 20 December 98 96.3 97.4 
			 39 27 December 98 96.3 97.3 
			      
			  2010    
			 40 3 January 98 95.5 96.8 
			 41 10 January 98 95.4 96.7 
			 42 17 January 98 96.1 97.3 
			 43 24 January 98 96.6 97.6 
			 44 31 January 98 97.2 98.0 
			 45 7 February 98 96.7 97.7 
			 46 14 February 98 97.2 98.0 
			 47 21 February 98 97.1 98.0 
			 48 28 February 98 96.6 97.6 
			 49 7 March 98 97.6 98.3 
			 50 14 March 98 98.1 98.7 
			 51 21 March 98 97.6 98.3 
			 52 28 March 98 97.5 98.3 
			 Note: There are four categories (types) of A&E department: Type 1 A&E department: A consultant-led 24-hour service with full resuscitation facilities and designated accommodation for the reception of accident and emergency patients. Type 2 A&E department: A consultant-led single specialty accident and emergency service (e.g. ophthalmology, dental) with designated accommodation for the reception of patients. Type 3 A&E department: Other type of A&E/minor injury units (MIUs) primarily designed for the receiving of accident and emergency patients. A type 3 department may be doctor-led or nurse-led. It may be co-located with a major A&E or sited in the community. A defining characteristic of a service qualifying as a type 3 department is that it treats at least minor injuries and illnesses (sprains for example) and can be routinely accessed without appointment. An appointment-based service (for example an out-patient clinic) or one mainly or entirely accessed via telephone or other referral (for example most out of hours services), or a dedicated primary care service (such as GP practice or GP-led health centre) is not a type 3 A&E service even though it may treat a number of patients with minor illness or injury. Excludes NHS walk-in centres. Type 4 A&E department: NHS walk in centre. Source: NHS England

Babies: Screening

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Answer of 14 May 2013, Official Report, column 159W, on babies: screening, when he expects a recommendation to be made on the accuracy of pulse oximetry as a screening test for congenital heart disease.

Daniel Poulter: The United Kingdom National Screening Committee (UK NSC) hope to make a recommendation about whether pulse oximetry should be added to the routine clinical examination of new born babies at their next committee meeting on 12 March 2014.
	The National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment programme have funded a study into the accuracy of pulse oximetry as a screening test for congenital heart defects in newborn infants. Research was undertaken at six hospitals to determine this. The UK NSC has reviewed the results of this trial and the world-wide clinical literature against its criteria. A consultation on the review took place 13 September to 13 December 2013. The consultation received around 300 responses from paediatric units, clinicians, royal colleges, professional bodies, voluntary and community sector organisations and members of the public.

Care Homes: CCTV

Gerry Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to explore the potential for safeguarding care home residents through the installation of covert CCTV.

Norman Lamb: The Department is not considering exploring the potential of closed circuit television monitoring in care homes.
	We are strengthening the Care Quality Commission's (CQC) regulatory function and believe that it should look carefully at how to uncover any type of abuse or neglect in care. The use of covert surveillance or video monitoring would require very careful consideration by the CQC, including balancing the need to improve the quality of care and the effectiveness of inspection with protecting and maintaining the privacy and dignity of service users.
	The CQC will have widespread powers to take firm action on poor care and to hold both councils and providers to account for the quality of services.

Deloitte

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 14 January 2014, Official Report, column 537W, on Deloitte, 
	(1)  whether NHS Protect was used for any part of the internal investigation into his Department's relationship with Deloitte;
	(2)  on what dates the internal investigation into his Department's relationship with Deloitte took place; and who in his Department was responsible for the investigation.

Daniel Poulter: The Department's then Director of Human Resources was responsible for conducting the internal investigation, which included a review of the Department's commercial relationships with management consultancies. The investigation took place during June and July 2010 and the findings and conclusions were reported to the then Permanent Secretary on 22 July 2010. This was an internal investigation and NHS Protect was not involved.

Diabetes

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many diabetes health checks have been carried out (a) nationally and (b) regionally in each of the last three years.

Jane Ellison: The National Diabetes Audit (NDA) includes the number of patients diagnosed with diabetes that received eight of the nine care processes as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in primary and secondary care. The nine care processes include HbA1c (blood glucose level), blood pressure, cholesterol, serum creatinine, urine albumin, foot surveillance, body mass index, smoking and eye screening. The number of people with diabetes recorded in primary care as having eye screening is not reported as the data related to eye screening rendered from electronic clinical records were unreliable.
	Participation in the audit is not mandatory.
	Information concerning the number of the eight care processes checks in the NDA for the years 2009-10 to 2011-12, both nationally and at clinical commissioning group level, has been placed in the Library.
	The total number of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) may not add to the England total due to general practice mapping issues. Participation is not uniform and may fluctuate within CCGs over the different audit years.

Diabetes: Depression

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the relationship between depression and (a) type I diabetes and (b) type II diabetes.

Jane Ellison: The Government are aware that being diagnosed and living with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes can have a huge impact on an individual's psychological wellbeing, with depression being approximately two times more common in people with diabetes. Nearly one in five people with diabetes have clinical depression.
	“The Diabetes in adults quality standard”, published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, sets out that as part of their care, people with diabetes should be assessed for psychological problems, which should then be managed appropriately.

Doctors: Working Hours

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 676W, on junior doctors, what course of action his Department would take if an NHS trust was found to be not complying with the Working Time Directive.

Daniel Poulter: It is the responsibility of all national health service trusts to ensure that service rota for junior doctors are compliant with the working time directive. Where concerns of non-compliance are raised, NHS Employers will liaise with those involved and explore further.
	The trust as the employer, may also find themselves held to account either by an employment tribunal or through the Health and Safety Executive if a formal complaint is made.

Doctors: Working Hours

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 676W, on junior doctors, when the President of the Royal College of Surgeons' independent taskforce will report; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: This is a matter for the independent Working Time Regulations Taskforce, although the Department expects the report to be provided to Ministers by the spring.

Fast Food

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the (a) list of attendees and (b) minutes of meetings between (i) Ministers and (ii) officials of his Department and (A) McDonalds, (B) Burger King and (C) KFC since May 2010.

Jane Ellison: This information is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Details of all ministerial meetings with external parties are published quarterly in arrears on the Department's website. The latest publication can be found on the Department's website at:
	www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings
	Further details of partners and minutes for the high level steering group are available at the following website:
	https://responsibilitydeal.dh.gov.uk
	In addition, I met a McDonalds franchisee in my constituency in relation to a local planning matter.

Fast Food

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what meetings (a) civil servants and (b) Ministers of his Department have had with representatives of (i) McDonalds, (ii) Burger King and (iii) KFC, since January 2013.

Jane Ellison: Available records show that the following meetings with representatives of McDonalds, Burger King and KFC took place in 2013:
	
		
			  Ministers Civil servants 
			 KFC — 1 November 2013 
			 McDonalds 7 March 2013 24 July 2013 
			   18 December 2013 
			 Burger King 5 July 2013 25 September 2013 
		
	
	In addition, I met a McDonalds franchisee in my constituency in relation to a local planning matter.

Keogh Review Committee

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library the minutes of all meetings of the Keogh review committee held between 1 and 6 July 2013.

Daniel Poulter: The Keogh review into trusts which were consistent outliers in mortality data was an independent review commissioned by the Prime Minister from Sir Bruce Keogh NHS medical director. The Department does not have any minutes of Keogh review committee meetings.

Medical Records: Databases

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether his Department has identified a number or proportion of patient opt-outs for medical records sharing in GP practices at which it considers too high;
	(2)  whether his Department plans to investigate GP practices which his Department considers to have a patient opt-out rate on medical records data sharing which is too high; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) will record the number of patient objections made at each general practitioner practice. Where there appears to be a high number of objections relative to the national average, NHS England and the HSCIC will work with the British Medical Association and the Royal College of General Practitioners to review the data.

Mental Health Services: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the per capita spend on mental health services was in each primary care trust in Cumbria in each of the last five years.

Norman Lamb: The information is not available in the format requested.
	The total reported investment in mental health services for the former Cumbria primary care trust (PCT) for working age adults in each of the five years for which figures are available is shown in the following table. These figures are taken from surveys commissioned by the Department and provide some information covering investment for the working age adult populations of strategic health authorities (SHAs), PCTs and local authorities within England. The Department stopped commissioning this survey in 2012.
	
		
			 Reported investment for working age adults—NHS Cumbria 
			 £000 
			  Total reported investment 
			 Primary Care Trust 2011-12 2010-11 2009-10 2008-09 2007-08 
			 Cumbria 54,632.88 53,014.90 42,638.81 39,963.08 34,488.64 
			 Sources: National Survey of Investment in Adult Mental Health Services, Mental Health Strategies 2011-12, 2010-11, 2009-10, 2008-09, 2007-08 
		
	
	The planned weighted investments per head in the North West SHA and England are shown in the following table. These figures are taken from the same sources.
	
		
			 Reported investments per head of weighted working age population—North West SHA and England 
			 £ 
			  2011-12 2010-11 2009-10 2008-09 2007-08 
			 North West SHA 201.6 195.0 191.17 177 162 
			 England 198.3 195.9 193.4 181 169 
			 Notes. 1. These surveys were commissioned annually by the Department of Health from Mental Health Strategies and published on the Department's website. 2. These survey figures were based on details submitted by each organisation on their reported investment in services and consequently, may not match actual outturn figures reported in annual their accounts. 3. The surveys were non-mandatory and include some estimated data. 4. Data covers services provided for working age adults (aged 18-64). Sources: National Survey of Investment in Adult Mental Health Services, Mental Health Strategies 2011-12, 2010-11, 2009-10, 2008-09, 2007-08

NHS England

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has discussed with NHS England the level of information local area teams should share in meetings with hon. Members.

Jane Ellison: Any request for information from local area teams would be a matter for NHS England. However, the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), is responsible for holding NHS England to account, including its commitments to openness and transparency, which he does through regular accountability meetings.

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2014, Official Report, column 591W, on NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement, which consultancy firms were employed by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement in 2012-13.

Jane Ellison: The consultancy spend by category for 2012-13 provided in the previous answer of 15 January 2014, Official Report, column 591W, was submitted by the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement to the Department as part of its regular procurement spend reporting, which is a requirement for all Departmental arm's length bodies. The names of the consultancy firms used are not provided as part of this reporting and NHS England, which hosts NHS Innovation and Quality, the successor body to the NHS Institute, has advised that it cannot confirm whether the information is still held without incurring disproportionate cost.

NHS Property Services

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many individuals have applied for the position of chairman of NHS Property Services and how many such individuals applied having been approached directly.

Daniel Poulter: NHS Property Services Ltd received 16 applications for the position of chairman, which was put out to open advert in the Sunday Times on 15 December 2013, with a closing date of 6 January 2014.
	It is normal practice to approach potential candidates directly in order to encourage a strong field of applicants. As such the Department has been in contact with two of the applicants on the basis of their previous experience in Government organisations.
	Each applicant is required to demonstrate their suitability through a rigorous, open and transparent shortlisting and interview process, carried out in line with the principles of the Commissioner for Public Appointments Code of Practice. This process is being managed by the Department's Public Appointments Team.

Self-harm

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have attended accident and emergency due to self-harm in each year since 2010; and how many such people received a NICE recommended psychological assessment.

Norman Lamb: The following table sets out a count of accident and emergency (A&E) attendances with a patient group of "deliberate self-harm" for the years 2011-12 and 2010-11.
	
		
			  Number of A&E attendances for self-harm Percentage of attendances Percentage of attendances with ‘unknown’ patient group Percentage of attendances with ‘other’ or ‘other accident’ patient group 
			 2010-11 112,669 0.7 4.7 89.7 
			 2011-12 118,935 0.7 5.0 89.3 
		
	
	However, this is a new data collection and it is accepted that there is likely to be under-reporting. Figures are not currently available on the proportion of people who received a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended psychological assessment.
	NICE guidelines state that emergency departments should refer all those who present with self-harm for a psychosocial assessment and this has been enforced by the Government's action plan on Mental Health, “Closing the Gap”, published on 20 January.
	In the revised Public Health Outcomes Framework, we have therefore introduced a new indicator that is specifically about self-harm. Under this indicator, we will measure:
	attendances at Emergency Departments for self-harm per 100,000 population; and
	percentage of attendances at Emergency Departments for self-harm that received a psychosocial assessment.
	This two-part indicator will demonstrate the prevalence of self-harm and also the quality of emergency department's response.

Self-harm: Young People

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of children and adolescents who have (a) self-harmed and (b) had suicidal tendencies since 2010.

Norman Lamb: Data are not available on the number of children and adolescents who have self-harmed and had suicidal tendencies since 2010.
	The Health and Social Care Information Centre recently published statistics on hospital care for children and young people as a special topic of interest. These data showed that in the 12 months to June 2013 there were 13,400 hospital cases where 15 to 19-year-old girls received treatment for an external cause of intentional self-harm (accounting for 5% of the total cases for this group). This compares to 4,000 cases among 15 to 19-year-old boys (or 3% of the total cases for this group).
	Source:
	Provisional Monthly Hospital Episode Statistics for Admitted Patient Care, Outpatients and Accident and Emergency Data April 2013 to June 2013.

Tobacco: Packaging

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what analysis his Department (a) has conducted and (b) is conducting on the potential effect on the economy of the introduction of standardised tobacco packaging.

Jane Ellison: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave on 22 January 2014, Official Report, column 242W, to the hon. Member for North Antrim (Ian Paisley).

HOME DEPARTMENT

Children: Internet

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the protection of children online.

Damian Green: Home Office Ministers regularly meet Ministers from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to discuss the protection of children online.
	I along with Victims jointly chair the Executive Board of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) with the Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, my hon. Friend the Member for Wantage (Mr Vaizey), who has responsibility for communications and the creative industries, and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Mr Timpson), who has responsibility for children and families. UKCCIS is a group of over 200 organisations containing representatives from Government, law enforcement, the charity sector, academia and the online industry, who work together to help keep children safe online.
	The UKCCIS Executive Board meets quarterly and last met on 26 November 2013. The next meeting is scheduled for March.
	Myself, Victims and the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport attended the Prime Minister's internet safety summit on 18 November 2013 This focused on the progress made in tackling illegal images online and announced a range of work that the Government would be undertaking to address this problem.

Driving Offences: Speed Limits

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason a person accused of a speeding offence is not allowed to view photographic evidence held by police authorities in relation to that alleged offence before deciding whether to contest the decision.

Damian Green: The provision of photographic evidence is an operational matter for the police.
	In cases where the identity of a driver is in doubt the police will provide the registered keeper of the vehicle with a photograph. The police may not provide a photograph of the driver if one is not available, or the driver has already accepted responsibility.

Police: Desborough

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers are based at Desborough police station; and whether there are any plans to close it.

Damian Green: Decisions about the most effective use of available resources, including the number and opening hours of police stations, are matters for chief constables and police and crime commissioners.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Work Experience

Seema Malhotra: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, how many people aged (a) 16 and under and (b) over 16 years old undertook work experience in the House of Commons Service in each of the last three years.

John Thurso: The numbers of participants on the House Service's work experience scheme were as follows:
	2011: 16 students, fourteen 16 years and under and two 17 and over
	2012: 4 students, all 16 years and under
	2013: 18 students, eleven 16 and under and seven aged 17 and over
	This does not include sandwich students who undertake a placement at the House as part of their university course, or young people engaged on the Speaker's Placement Scheme and the Clerk's Apprentice Scheme.

JUSTICE

Children and Young Persons Act 1933

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 29 October 2013, Official Report, column 415W, on Children and Young Persons Act 1933, what consultation or other steps he has taken on legislating to bring social and electronic media explicitly within section 39 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933.

Jeremy Wright: The Government are currently reviewing the existing law on reporting restrictions in criminal proceedings including how it applies to social (electronic) media, which will also cover cases involving under-18s. In connection with this we have consulted interested parties including the judiciary and representatives of the press. We will publish our conclusions in due course.

Prisons

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what criteria are used by his Department in the prison benchmarking process.

Jeremy Wright: Benchmarking involves developing a benchmark for each different type of prison and applying it to ensure an operational fit in each individual prison. However, common to all the benchmarks are the requirements to contribute to the additional efficiencies the public sector prisons are required to make; to deliver services which help reduce reoffending; and to ensure that prisons continue to operate safely, decently and securely.

Prisons: Civil Disorder

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on which occasions HM Prison Oakwood has provided Tornado-trained staff to other prisons to deal with disturbances since it first opened.

Jeremy Wright: Operation Tornado is terminology used by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) to describe mutual aid arrangements across the prison estate in England and Wales. These arrangements are in place to assist establishments responding to serious incidents, such as acts of concerted indiscipline by providing specially trained resources above and beyond those already available at an establishment.
	Tornado-trained staff from HM Prison Oakwood have been deployed only once by NOMS headquarters since opening and that was on 2 November 2013 to assist HM Prison Rye Hill in the management of an act of concerted indiscipline that required extra resources. The incident was resolved before the Tornado team arrived and the unit was stood down.

Probation

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what steps he has taken to monitor capacity in trusts to manage change and maintain business as usual as part of the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to monitor the extent and speed of the structural changes which cannot be achieved as part of the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme;
	(3)  what steps he has taken to ensure that the transition work does not become too time consuming as part of the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme;
	(4)  what steps he has taken to ensure that the leadership focus is not disproportional on delivering change as part of the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme.

Jeremy Wright: We are working closely with trusts to ensure that transition is managed in a way that enables operational staff to continue to deliver on the ground in a safe and effective manner. We are committed to giving trusts all the information, resources and support they need to transition successfully to the new system.
	The programme team have established a People Transition Service to support the trusts through this process, created a network of trust transition managers and have recently installed a network of change managers specifically to work with local trusts on ICT issues. The programme has regular contact with trusts about how the plans for moving to the new system are progressing. We will continue to check that the new structures are fit for purpose throughout the implementation process.
	We are rolling the reforms out in a measured, orderly way to ensure public safety is maintained.

Probation

Mike Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the risks arising from the scale and speed of the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the risks to the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme of poor design of operational processes;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the risks to the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme of inadequate engagement with trusts;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of the risks to the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme of insufficient testing of operational designs;
	(5)  what assessment he has made of the risks to the Transforming Rehabilitation Probation programme of lack of resources and preparation.

Jeremy Wright: We are introducing important reforms to the way offenders are rehabilitated in order to tackle high reoffending rates that currently see almost half of all prisoners commit further crime within a year of release. It is imperative we move ahead now to reduce reoffending. However, we will be taking a phased approach to implementation which will enable us to make sure the system works. The Department is overseeing the reforms in a way which ensures that public protection is at the heart of our reformed system. The programme has been engaging closely with the leadership of probation trusts, and we are committed to giving trusts all the information, resources and support they need to successfully transition to the new system.
	We have developed and designed the new system through consultation and engagement. This has included working with operational staff from probation trusts to test the design of the future operational model. We will continue to work closely with trusts to test key aspects of the new system in the run up to implementation. We also have plans in place to roll out further business readiness tests at key stages of implementation so that we can ensure we are managing the transition to the new system in a safe and measured way.

Procurement

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion and value of his Department's contracts have been let (a) under the restricted procedure, (b) by the open procedure, (c) via framework agreements and (d) via a tendering process involving the use of a pre-qualification questionnaire in each of the last three years.

Jeremy Wright: The information requested is not held centrally and to gather it would require manually scrutinising the records. Therefore this would incur a disproportionate cost.

Procurement

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of his Department's overall procurement spend for each of the last three financial years was spent (a) in joint procurement exercises with other Departments and (b) shared between different organisations within the same Department group.

Shailesh Vara: The information requested is not held centrally and to gather it would require manually scrutinising the records. This would incur a disproportionate cost.

Procurement

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for each of the last three financial years how much and what proportion of the Department's procurement was conducted using e-procurement tools; and what the value of such contracts was.

Jeremy Wright: The data requested are not readily available and would require each contract manager to manually go through their contracts over the period of the last three years to produce the data.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many appeal cases for hearing at tribunals relating to matters within the remit of the Department for Work and Pensions were waiting to be heard as at (a) 31 March, (b) 30 June and (c) 30 September 2013;
	(2)  how many appeal cases for hearing at tribunals relating to matters within the remit of the Department for Work and Pensions have been waiting to be heard for more than (a) three, (b) six, (c) nine and (d) 12 months.

Shailesh Vara: The First-tier Tribunal-Social Security and Child Support (SSCS), administered by HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS), hears appeals against Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) decisions on a range of benefits and credits.
	There are always a number of ‘live' appeals at various stages of processing. ‘Live' appeals include cases which may not require a tribunal hearing, or which may already have had a tribunal hearing which was adjourned, or which requires a re-hearing following a decision at the Upper Tribunal.
	(1) The following table shows the total number of ‘live' appeals against DWP decisions at (a) 31 March 2013, (b) 30 June 2013 and (c) 30 September 2013.
	
		
			 'Live' appeals against DWP decisions 
			  Number 
			 31 March 2013 202,397 
			 30 June 2013 228,611 
			 30 September 2013 212,358 
		
	
	(2) HMCTS records the time taken from receipt to final outcome but does not hold details of waiting times for appeals to be heard. This information could therefore be provided only at disproportionate cost by a manual check of individual files. The average waiting time for all benefit types has fallen nationally from 23 weeks in 2011-12 to 18 weeks in 2012-13. This reduction has been sustained at 18 weeks in the period 1 April to 30 September 2013 (the most recent period for which statistics have been published).

Truancy: Prosecutions

Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been prosecuted for truancy-related offences under the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2006 in each year since 2006.

Jeremy Wright: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates court for truancy offences in England, from 2006 to 2012 (latest available) can be viewed in the following table:
	
		
			 Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates court for truancy1 offences in England, 2006-122,3 
			 Offence 2006 2007 200834 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Parent's failure to secure child's regular attendance at school 4,439 5,903 7,608 9,314 9,602 10,308 10,588 
			 Parent knowing, that their child is failing to attend school regularly failing without reasonable justification to cause him or her to attend school 1,560 1,842 1,898 1,397 1,658 2,036 1,773 
			 1 Truancy offences under: Education Act 1996, section 444. 2 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 3 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 4 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice

Youth Justice Board: Birmingham

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of the 11 members of the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales have their main residence north of the city of Birmingham.

Chris Grayling: All appointments to the Youth Justice Board of England and Wales are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments and the recruitment of members complies with the Commissioner's code. Of the 11 current members of the Youth Justice Board, four members have their main residence north of Birmingham.

TRANSPORT

A303

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he plans to publish the draft scope for the A303 feasibility study.

Robert Goodwill: The Department has committed to undertaking six feasibility studies as part of the process of identifying and funding solutions to tackle some of the most notorious and long-standing road hot spots in the country. The studies include work on the problems on the A303/A30/A358 corridor.
	As part of that process we committed to engage with stakeholders to develop and agree the detailed scope of the study. On 15 January I wrote to my hon. Friends whose constituencies lie within the proposed geographic scope of the study, to set out a brief synopsis of our proposals for the study. The Department has put in place arrangements to canvas views on the proposed scope of the study work with relevant stakeholders during January and February. At the end of that process we will publish the finalised scope.
	I will provide my hon. Friend with copies of the documentation sent to my hon. Friends.

Assets

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assets are classified as held for sale by (a) his Department, (b) each of his Department's non-departmental public bodies, (c) his Department's executive agencies, (d) Directly Operated Railways and (e) London and Continental Railways Ltd.

Stephen Hammond: As part of the Government's Transparency Agenda information about Department for Transport properties is published on the data.gov.uk website. Information on the properties owned and leased by the Department, as well as surplus properties, is available via the following web link:
	http://data.gov.uk/dataset/epims
	The latest data are on the tab labelled “Register of Public Sector Land 17-10-13”.

Bus Services: Disability

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 14 January 2014, Official Report, column 458W, on bus services: disability, if he will place a copy of the letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State to bus industry representatives on audio-visual systems for buses in the Library.

Stephen Hammond: In my answer of 14 January 2014, Official Report, column 458W, on bus services: disability, I stated that my hon. Friend, the Minister of State will write to bus industry representatives shortly to encourage further development of more affordable audio-visual systems for buses.
	As soon as this letter is sent, a copy will be placed in the Library of both Houses.

Cycling: Accidents

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many cyclists were killed in Greater London in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The number of cyclists killed in Greater London in reported road accidents in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012 were:
	
		
			  Cyclist fatalities 
			 2010 10 
			 2011 16 
			 2012 14 
		
	
	The data for the year 2013 will be available in June 2014.

Driving under Influence: Drugs

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the medical profession on the effect of drug driving legislation on patients; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: I have had no discussions with the medical profession on the effect of the drug driving legislation on patients. Officials have met and discussed the new legislation with representatives of the medical profession, patient support groups, the pharmaceutical industry and the Department of Health.
	A full consideration of any potential impact on patients will be incorporated in the summary of the two consultations on the proposed drugs and their limits. We expect to publish the summary shortly after the consultation on the Government's proposed limit for amphetamine closes on 30 January 2014.

Driving: Licensing

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Advertising Standards Agency on counteracting misleading advertising claims for driving licence renewals.

Stephen Hammond: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has not consulted with the Advertising Standards Agency on this issue.
	The Department is aware of several websites not connected to the DVLA or the official Government website that are offering services to customers who are applying for driving licences. The Office of Fair Trading has ruled that websites which charge additional fees and services are not acting illegally.
	The Government, led by Cabinet Office Government Digital Service, will continue to investigate reports of organisations which may be actively misleading users about their services or acting illegally, taking swift action when necessary.
	The DVLA has published advice on GOV.UK to remind motorists that GOV.UK is the first stop for motoring services and that other websites may charge additional fees. The DVLA also directs motorists to GOV.UK in all its leaflets, forms and in news stories and its social media channels.

Driving: Licensing

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make it his policy that people who have recently renewed their driving licences are not charged when they are required to renew them again when they reach the age of 70; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: There is no charge for drivers to renew their driving licence at age 70 or thereafter.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will comply with the decision of the House of Lords Standing Orders Committee that the consultation period on the Environmental Statement should be extended to 27 February 2014.

Robert Goodwill: As published in national newspapers and advertised on the websites of both the Department for Transport and HS2 Ltd the Environmental Statement Consultation will end on 27 February 2014.

Large Goods Vehicles

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish the data collected for the operator compliance risk score by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.

Stephen Hammond: To ensure compliance with the Data Protection Act, DVSA does not currently publish specific OCRS data. However, operators are able to obtain their own OCRS scores, details of annual tests and roadside encounters on-line. A more detailed OCRS report has been developed in association with industry representatives and will be made available to individual operators in the spring of 2014.

Motorways: Accidents

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how many hours UK motorways were closed in part or completely in either direction due to accidents in each of the last five years.

Robert Goodwill: Over the last five years (1 January 2009 to 31 December 2013 inc), on the English motorway network, 3,911 Road Traffic Collisions have been recorded that resulted in a total closure (all lanes both carriageways) or whole closure (all lanes one carriageway) with a total of 10,413 hours and five minutes impact duration being recorded.
	Please note, this is the total impact duration (the time where the capacity, of one or more running lanes, has been reduced) and not just the time that all lanes were closed, as this information is not recorded.
	The information above is broken down on a year-by-year basis as follows:
	2009—869 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 2,041 hours 34 minutes
	2010—821 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 2,123 hours 59 minutes
	2011—764 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 2,163 hours 49 minutes
	2012—838 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 2,088 hours 14 minutes
	2013—619 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 1,995 hours 30 minutes

Motorways: Accidents

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how many hours any part of the motorway between (a) junction 10 and junction 13 on the M1, (b) junctions 19 and 20 on the M4, (c) junctions 15 and 17 on the M5, (d)(i) junctions 4 and 5 and (ii) junctions 8 and 10a on the M6 and (e) junctions 3a and 7 on the M42 was fully or partially closed in either direction as a result of an accident in each of the last five years.

Robert Goodwill: As follows is the number and total impact duration of all road traffic collisions with a total closure (all lanes both carriageways) or whole closure (all lanes one carriageway), over the last five years (1 January 2009—31 December 2013 inc), by specific locations (both directions):
	M1 J10-J13—59 Road traffic collisions, total impact duration 137 hours 10 minutes;
	M4 J19-J20—10 Road traffic collisions, total impact duration 14 hours 56 minutes;
	M5 J15-J17—Nine road traffic collisions, total impact duration 54 hours 46 minutes;
	M6 J4-J5—12 Road traffic collisions, total impact duration 13 hours 50 minutes;
	M6 J8-J10a—16 Road traffic collisions, total impact duration 61 hours 7 minutes;
	M42 3a-J7—18 Road Traffic Collisions, total impact duration 51 hours 11 minutes.
	Please note, this is the total impact duration (the time where the capacity, of one or more running lanes, has been reduced) and not just the time, that all lanes were closed as this information is not recorded.

Motorways: Air Pollution

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effect on air quality of the (a) managed motorway pilots on the M42 and M7 and (b) all-lanes- running aspects of the managed motorway pilots on the M42 and M7.

Robert Goodwill: A report which analysed 12 months worth of data completed under the M42 Active Traffic Management (ATM) monitoring and evaluation project was published by the Highways Agency in 2008 and included an assessment of the impact on air quality in Chapter 8.
	The report is available online at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http:/www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/tpm/m42activetrafficmanagement/atm12mthsumrep.pdf
	The M42 is not an all lanes running (ALR) section of managed motorways. ALR is where the hard shoulder is permanently converted to a full-time running lane.
	The M7 is the responsibility of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport for Ireland.

Pedestrians: Accidents

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many pedestrians under the age of 16 were killed in Greater London in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The number of pedestrians under the age of 16 killed in reported road traffic accidents in Greater London in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012, were as follows:
	
		
			  Pedestrian fatalities aged 0 to15 
			 (a) 2010 8 
			 (b) 2011 5 
			 (c) 2012 2 
		
	
	Data for the year 2013 will be available in June 2014.

Pedestrians: Accidents

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many pedestrians were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in Greater London in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The number of pedestrians (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in reported road traffic accidents in Greater London in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012, were as follows:
	
		
			  (a) Killed (b) Seriously injured 
			 (i) 2010 58 855 
			 (ii) 2011 77 903 
			 (iii) 2012 70 1,054 
		
	
	Data for the year 2013 will be available June 2014.

Pedestrians: Accidents

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of pedestrian fatalities in Greater London involved pedestrians on a pedestrian crossing in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The proportion of pedestrian fatalities in reported road traffic accidents in Greater London, which involved pedestrians on a pedestrian crossing in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012, were as follows:
	
		
			  Pedestrian fatalities Pedestrian fatalities on pedestrian crossings Proportion on crossings (%) 
			 2010 58 9 16 
			 2011 77 18 23 
			 2012 70 18 26 
		
	
	Data for the year 2013 will be available in June 2014.

Railways

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the proportion of passenger rail journeys requiring (a) no change of train, (b) one change of train and (c) more than one change of train (i) in the last year for which data is available and (ii) in 1994.

Stephen Hammond: The following table shows the proportion of passenger rail journeys in Great Britain involving no change, one change or two or more changes of train in 2012. Equivalent data from 1994 are not available.
	
		
			 Proportion of surface rail trips involving no change, one change or two or more changes of train: 2012 
			 Number of changes of train Percentage 
			 No change 85 
			 One change 14 
			 Two or more changes 2 
			 Note: Figures may not add up to 100% due to rounding. Source: National Travel Survey

Railways: Employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) temporary staff and (b) consultants (i) have worked and (ii) are projected to work on the (A) Thameslink Programme, (B) InterCity Express Programme and (C) a rail franchising programme in each year between 2010 and 2015.

Stephen Hammond: For the years 2010 and 2011 there were five individuals contracted to provide key skills to the Thameslink Programme team within the Department. This number was reduced to two for 2012 and is expected to remain at this level through to the end of 2015.
	Since 2010, there has only been one individual contracted to provide key skills to the Intercity Express Procurement programme. That contract will end in summer 2014. Going forward it is expected that a temporary member of staff will be required later this year.
	Since the re-launch of the franchising programme and following recommendations from the Brown Review, the Department has brought in a range of experienced individuals, with senior level experience in areas such as procurement and commercial negotiation, finance and programme management to strengthen and support the new franchising directorate. In 2013-14 DFT has employed a maximum of 41 interim managers as part of the Rail Franchising team; we have reduced these numbers to the current level of 37. We expect to reduce these to 32 as contracts start to expire in early 2014-15 and will continue this trend as we recruit permanent staff. Details of the number of temporary staff working on franchising prior to the restart of the programme are not available. However, the level was considerably lower than currently, with less than five temporary staff employed at any given time.
	The Department has also contracted external advisors to provide a range of services to Thameslink, IEP and Rail Franchising including: legal, financial, technical, rolling stock, insurance, procurement, business case and cost management advice.
	All teams within DFT keep staffing requirements under review as part of normal corporate planning.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff have been made redundant or retired by his Department and subsequently re-employed since May 2010. [Official Report, 6 February 2014, Vol. 575, c. 2MC.]

Stephen Hammond: In total 12 civil servants have been re-employed by either Department for Transport central or one of its Agencies having been made voluntarily redundant or retired by the same organisation since May 2010. This is a very small percentage (less than 1%) of external recruitment over that period.

Rescue Services: Belfast

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport on how many occasions the Coastguard station at Belfast was staffed at a level that was below safe risk in 2013; and what proportion of shifts this represented.

Stephen Hammond: During 2013 Belfast Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed below risk assessed levels on 414 occasions out of 730 shifts. This represents 56.7% of all shifts in 2013.
	Her Majesty's Coastguard has recruited additional staff at Belfast MRCC during 2013 to address staffing levels; as a result Belfast MRCC is now staffed above complement.
	Where there are specific issues at a MRCC, Her Majesty's Coastguard is using the current long established pairing arrangements between MRCCs. This enables each MRCC to be connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support.

TREASURY

Energy Technologies Institute

Liam Byrne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on extending existing financial guarantees to the Energy Technologies Institute; and what recent discussions he has had about extending such guarantees.

Danny Alexander: The ETI is currently within the remit of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Minister for Universities and Science, the right hon. Member for Havant (Mr Willetts), has many discussions on a variety of topics related to innovation funding.

Financial Services: Social Networking

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions he has had with the Financial Conduct Authority on updating guidance on the use of social media for financial promotions.

George Osborne: Treasury Ministers and officials meet regularly with the Financial Conduct Authority to discuss relevant regulatory issues.
	As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Treasury's practice to provide details of all such discussions.

Mortgages

David Morris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps the Government are taking to reduce the number of foreclosures.

Sajid Javid: Two of the key factors that drive repossessions are mortgage interest rates and unemployment. Action by this Government to put the public finances on a sustainable footing has supported low and stable interest rates. Since the coalition came into power employment has increased by 1.3 million and unemployment has fallen by 173,000. Such strong labour market figures have helped keep repossessions down. There were 48,900 repossessions in 2009, compared with 33,900 in 2012.
	The Government have also put in place specific measures aimed at reducing the number of repossessions. These include temporary extensions to Support for Mortgage Interest, which helps pensioners and those out of work to meet their mortgage payments, and protection in the courts through the pre-action protocol, which makes it clear that repossession must always be the last resort for lenders.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Atos Healthcare

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of Atos using computer equipment on his Department's premises owing to data protection issues with the use of their own networks; and what comparative assessment he has made of this cost and the original tender price.

Michael Penning: There have been no instances of Atos using computer equipment on the Department's premises resulting from data protection issues with the use of their own networks on either the Medical Services Assessments (MSA) or the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) contracts that they hold. As a result, there is no cost to the public purse, and no comparative assessment can be made.

Child Maintenance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to publish regular statistics on outcomes achieved by the child maintenance options service following the introduction of a mandatory conversation with the Service for parents wishing to apply to the 2012 statutory Child Maintenance Service.

Steve Webb: We are continuing to monitor the outcomes for parents who are in contact with the child maintenance options service through the quarterly child maintenance options survey. This survey includes those who have been through the mandatory gateway. Currently, there are no plans to publish these statistics on a regular basis, but we will consider this as part of our wider publications strategy.

Child Maintenance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to repeat the survey of child maintenance options outcomes.

Steve Webb: The survey of child maintenance options outcomes is carried out every quarter. It was published as an ad hoc statistical release on 23 November 2012, and is available on the GOV.UK website at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-maintenance-options-outcomes-survey-2012
	The survey allows us to monitor the number of children benefiting from the child maintenance options service. Currently, there are no further plans to publish this data as an ad hoc release, but we will consider this as part of our wider publications strategy.

Employment Schemes

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which local authorities have contracts with his Department to deliver back to work support; and which local authorities have Work Programme sub-contracts with prime providers.

Esther McVey: Nottingham city council delivers an Innovation Fund contract for DWP. This is aimed at supporting disadvantaged young people, and those at risk of disadvantage, aged 14 years and over.
	The latest update from Work programme providers (30 November 2013) showed that the following local authorities have subcontracts with prime providers:
	Neath Port Talbot county borough council
	Vale of Glamorgan county borough council
	Blaenau Gwent county borough council
	Merthyr Tydfil county borough council
	Pembrokeshire county council
	Cardiff council
	Newport city council
	Brighton and Hove council
	Kent county council
	Medway council
	Stoke on Trent city council
	Barnsley metropolitan borough council
	Suffolk county council
	City of Lincoln council
	Greenwich council
	London borough of Bexley
	London borough of Lambeth
	Southwark council
	Gateshead county council
	Northumberland county council
	Halton borough council
	Liverpool city council
	Sefton council
	Cheshire West and Chester council
	Manchester city council
	Bolton council
	Argyle and Bute council
	Renfrewshire council
	Slough borough council
	Wycombe district council
	Southampton city council

Fracking

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that the Health and Safety Executive conduct regular inspections to ensure existing regulations are adhered to in the shale gas industry.

Michael Penning: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) uses a range of techniques to regulate shale gas work activities throughout the life cycle of a well to ensure that operators manage and control health and safety risks effectively. This includes engaging with well operators at the well design stage, assessing well notifications before operations start, reviewing operators' weekly reports to ensure work on the well is progressing safely to plan, and conducting targeted on-site inspections informed by these activities. HSE is also committed to visit jointly with the Environment Agency all shale gas sites during the current exploratory phase of shale gas development.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what partnership agreements are in place between Jobcentre Plus and (a) individual local authorities and (b) the local government association.

Esther McVey: We make partnership agreements with those involved in the delivery of services. The local government association serves a different purpose so whilst we work with them on many issues there are no formal agreements. Districts work closely with local authorities and where they mutually consider it helpful they put in place informal or formal partnership arrangements.

Redundancy Pay

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on redundancy payments in each year since 2010.

Michael Penning: Since 2010 the Department has made 262 employees redundant at a cost of £7.9 million. The redundancies were made as follows:
	
		
			 Period (financial year) Redundancy costs (£ million) Of which voluntary (£ million) Of which compulsory (£ million) Redundancy costs as percentage of Total DWP paybill (Percentage) 
			 2010-11 Nil Nil Nil — 
			 2011-12 6.31 6.20 0.11 0.24 
			 2012-13 1.59 0.94 0.65 0.06 
			 Totals 7.9 7.14 0.76 — 
		
	
	These redundancies have been made as a result of the transformation of departmental business. Redundancies followed selection exercises to ensure that the Department retained its business critical staff.

Separated People: Finance

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has for the independent evaluation of the seven projects granted £6.5 million of funding in April 2013 under the Help and Support for Separated Families initiative; and if he will set out the criteria for that evaluation.

Steve Webb: Evaluation of these projects is critical and we have set aside funding to ensure this is carried out effectively. At present, most of the projects commissioned in the first round are still in the early stages of implementation. The projects have started to monitor outcomes and we have found some very positive case studies but evaluation results, including an overview of the criteria used, will not be published until later this year when sufficient evidence has been collected.

Social Security Benefits

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he takes to ensure that his Department's contracted providers do not charge for work capability assessments or work programme placements which people do not attend as they are no longer claiming benefit.

Esther McVey: DWP makes referrals to Atos Healthcare to arrange work capability assessments and withdraw those referrals when people are no longer claiming benefit. There is not a fixed fee for the provision of assessments. As the number of assessments required by the Department increases or decreases then the payment made to Atos Healthcare for these assessments varies accordingly.

Social Security Benefits

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) employment and support allowance hardship claims have been made since July 2012.

Esther McVey: The information requested about the number of claims for hardship is intended for future publication and will be released in due course in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what definition he uses for (a) expectations for sanctions referrals and (b) targets for Jobcentre Plus staff.

Esther McVey: The information is as follows:
	(a) There are no sanction targets or expectations for number of referrals.
	(b) Departmental Performance Agreements replaced top-down targets with planning assumptions, introducing a more flexible culture of continuous improvement to drive up individual and organisational performance and providing greater value for money to deliver high quality public services.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of correlation between increased sanctioning and (a) jobseeking success rates, (b) incidents of abuse and assaults committed against staff in jobcentres and (c) referrals of claimants to foodbanks.

Esther McVey: We have made no such assessment.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to his Department's statistics on sanctions published on 6 November 2013, if he will provide a breakdown of those statistics by (a) region and (b) equality groups as proportion of the claimant count.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 112W, on universal credit, what progress his Department has made in ensuring that claimants who do not have a bank account have access to suitable financial products and money advice before migrating to universal credit.

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Member to the previous reply I gave her on 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 112W.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to produce a paper application form for universal credit.

Esther McVey: There are no plans to produce a paper version of the application form.
	The main route to access universal credit is through digital channels and evidence from universal credit live running shows that this is the preferred option for the majority of claimants.
	Support arrangements are in place for those who cannot access or use the online service.

Work Capability Assessment

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons Atos is classified as a data processor rather than a data controller when carrying out work capability assessments.

Michael Penning: As data processors Atos Healthcare gathers information when carrying out work capability assessments on behalf of DWP.
	DWP is a data controller to process personal information and is registered with the Information Commissioner's office.

CABINET OFFICE

Long-term Unemployed People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people over 25 have been unemployed for over two years (a) at the most recent date for which figures are available and (b) in each year since 1992.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated January 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question to ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people aged over 25 have been unemployed for over two years (a) at the most recent date for which figures are available and (b) in each year since 1992.(184387)
	Estimates of unemployment by age are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). The table provides estimates for the number of people aged 25 and over who have been unemployed for 2 years or more.
	As with any sample survey, estimates from LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. These are indicated by the guide to quality in the table.
	
		
			 Number of unemployed people aged 25 and over, by duration three months ending November each year, 1992 to 2013 United Kingdom, seasonally adjusted 
			  Unemployed for 2 years or more (thousands) As a percentage of all unemployed in age group (%) 
			 1992 468 23.3 
			 1993 566 28.1 
			 1994 587 32.8 
			 1995 538 317 
			 1996 474 30.7 
			 1997 347 27.0 
			 1998 286 24.8 
			 1999 252 22.1 
			 2000 202 20.5 
			 2001 170 18.2 
			 2002 144 15.0 
			 2003 130 14.3 
			 2004 113 13.8 
			 2005 125 14.0 
			 2006 154 15.4 
			 2007 143 15.2 
			 2008 161 14.2 
			 2009 182 11.9 
			 2010 261 17.0 
		
	
	
		
			 2011 327 20.0 
			 2012 340 22.2 
			 2013 340 24.3 
			 Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key: * 0 ≤ CV < 5—Statistical Robustness—Estimates are considered precise. ** 5 ≤ CV < 10—Statistical Robustness—Estimates are considered reasonably precise. ***10 ≤ CV < 20—Statistical Robustness—Estimates are considered acceptable. **** CV ≥ 20—Statistical Robustness—Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes Coefficient of Variation (CV) (%) Source: Labour Force Survey

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Ryan Coetzee

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister with reference to the Cabinet Office publication special advisers in post, published on 25 October 2013, in what capacity he employs Ryan Coetzee; what his job description is; and what the duration is of his contract.

Nicholas Clegg: Ryan Coetzee is appointed as a special adviser under terms and conditions set out in the Code of Conduct and Model Contract for Special Advisers, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.